1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a head-protecting airbag device whose airbag is mountable on an upper periphery of a window of a vehicle at an inboard side of the vehicle in a folded-up configuration with an upper edge thereof secured to a vehicle body structure and is deployable downward over the window when fed with an inflation gas.
2. Description of Related Art
JP2012-20719 (especially FIGS. 9 to 11) discloses a known head-protecting airbag device that includes an airbag body for covering an inboard side of a window, a terminal partitioning portion extending generally in an up and down direction and a terminal inflatable portion that is partitioned from a remaining general inflatable portion of the airbag body by the terminal partitioning portion. The airbag further includes a tension cloth that is disposed on an outboard side of the terminal inflatable portion. A first end of the tension cloth is connected to the terminal partitioning portion and a second end of the tension cloth is fixed to a vehicle body structure at a periphery of the window. This conventional head-protecting airbag device is so designed that the airbag body covers the inboard side of the window in order to protect a head of an occupant which would otherwise be thrown out of the vehicle in the event of a rollover of the vehicle. The tension cloth is a generally right triangle in outer contour and its first end or rear edge is connected to the terminal partitioning portion generally entirely in an up and down direction, while its second end or front edge is secured to the vehicle body structure.
At airbag deployment of the conventional head-protecting airbag device, a tension is exerted generally along a front and rear direction between the leading end or front end of the tension cloth to the rear end of the airbag body, such that the terminal inflatable portion is pushed toward an interior of the vehicle by the tension cloth in such a manner as to direct the front end toward the vehicle interior, and consequently the terminal inflatable portion is deployed farther inward than the general inflatable region. Further, in the conventional head-protecting airbag device, the terminal inflatable portion is connected with the tension cloth only by the rear end (i.e., at the terminal partitioning portion), and is mounted on the vehicle body at the upper periphery of the window by a position at the rear of and above the terminal partitioning portion.
The airbag body of the conventional head-protecting airbag device further includes more than one mounting portions that mount the airbag body on the vehicle body structure. Out of the mounting portions, a mounting portion that mounts an upper edge of a vicinity of the terminal inflatable portion has generally the same protruding amount out of the airbag body as other mounting portions that mount an upper edge of a remaining region of the airbag body on the vehicle body structure. With this configuration, the mounting portion located proximate the terminal inflatable portion may keep the terminal inflatable portion from deploying towards a vehicle interior sufficiently though it is expected to cover an inboard side of the pillar garnish of the front pillar protruding further inward than the window. In such an instance, the terminal inflatable portion may fail to cover the inboard side of the pillar garnish sufficiently.